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Super Smash Bros. adds playable Mario Maker, Duck Hunt levels

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【Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U】Mii Fighters Suit Up for Wave Four
A newly released patch for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS versions of Nintendo’s crossover brawler
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Super Smash Bros. adds more playable levels on both platforms, along with a collection of new Mii character costumes.
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Chief among the latest additions is a level based on Nintendo’s recently released game design toolkit Super Mario Maker. The stage generates randomized layouts that draw from Super Mario Maker‘s DIY creative elements, providing a unique challenge with every match. The Super Mario Maker level is available for play in both the 3DS and Wii U versions of Super Smash Bros.

Nintendo 3DS players get another new stage as part of this week’s cross-platform software update. The “Duck Hunt” level, inspired by Nintendo’s 8-bit light gun game, puts players in front of a pixelated backdrop filled with characters that influence the on-screen action. Previously released as a Wii U-exclusive level, the Duck Hunt stage is now available as a free download for 3DS owners.

Also arriving this week is the “Pirate Ship” level, which is currently exclusive to the Wii U edition of Super Smash Bros. Adapted from a level previously featured in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the Pirate Ship stage features settings and characters from the GameCube and Wii U adventure game The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.

The Pirate Ship level is priced at $2. The Super Mario Maker stage is priced at $2.50 on each available platform, and players can purchase both the Wii U and 3DS versions for $3.50.

The latest patch additionally rolls out seven new Mii Fighter costumes, expanding player customization options. New costumes include business suits for all three Mii Fighter variations, along with character skins inspired by Nintendo franchises like Star Fox, F-Zero, Super Mario, and Kid Icarus. Also up for grabs are two costumes lifted from Capcom’s popular Monster Hunter series.

Mii Fighter costumes are available for $.75 each. All costumes can also be purchased in a bundle for $5.25 on each platform, or $8.05 for both editions. A full bundle that collects all recently released stages and costumes is priced at $7.75 for a single platform or $13.53 for both.

Available at: Amazon

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Danny Cowan
Danny Cowan
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Danny’s passion for video games was ignited upon his first encounter with Nintendo’s Duck Hunt, and years later, he still…
The Super Mario Bros. movie is delayed to April 2023
Mario with a shocked expression.

Mario fans are going to have to wait a little bit longer for their cinematic Christmas present. Nintendo and Illumination have announced that the release of the CGI-animated Super Mario Bros. movie has been delayed to April 2023.

The film, which has been in production since 2018, was originally slated to come out in theaters on December 21, 2022. But on Monday night, Nintendo director and Super Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto and Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri, who helmed the iconic Despicable Me film series, announced on Twitter that the release date for the movie was pushed back to April 7, 2023, for North America and April 28, 2023, for Japan after consulting with each other.

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Nintendo’s eShop closures are a necessary, but messy move
A Nintendo Wii U gamepad flat on a table.

Nintendo last week announced its intentions to shut down the Wii U and 3DS eShops, the systems' digital storefronts, in March 2023. This decision was disappointing for hardcore fans who stuck with Nintendo during that rocky era and extremely worrying as many of the games available on the platforms won't be preserved.
More significant Wii U games and a handful of 3DS titles were ported to Switch, but many titles are still stuck on those systems and can’t be ported. Once the digital storefront shutdowns, digital-only titles will be gone forever, and physical copies of these titles will get more expensive and harder to experience. Fans and game preservationists have not been pleased by this decision, with the Video Game History Foundation giving the most candid response.
https://twitter.com/GameHistoryOrg/status/1494398068346654720
Following this announcement, Digital Trends spoke to an industry analyst and game preservationists to get a better idea of what exactly caused Nintendo to shut down these stores and to learn how it could do a better job at preserving its legacy.
Why is Nintendo shutting down the 3DS and Wii eShops?
Officially, Nintendo’s FAQ on the eShop closures says “this is part of the natural life cycle for any product line as it becomes less used by consumers over time." The answer doesn’t get into specifics and might confuse those still playing games on the system or fans of games only available on Wii U or 3DS. Omdia Principal Analyst Matthew Bailey explains Nintendo’s user base argument in more detail, highlighting the massive gap between the number of people playing the Switch as opposed to the Wii U.
“While Omdia expects the number of Switch consoles in active use to exceed 90 million on a global basis this year, the Wii U’s global active installed base will drop under one million in 2022,” he explains. “Even when you include the more enduring 3DS family of consoles into the equation, the Switch still comfortably accounts for over 90% of Nintendo’s total active console install base.”
If one is going off just the numbers, it’s sensible that Nintendo would want to focus on the majority of its players. Bailey admits that “Switch users are already reaping the benefits of Nintendo’s singular first-party development focus on one platform.” Still, one might argue that Nintendo should just let the eShops remain up even if it isn’t actively updating or maintaining them.

Unfortunately, Nintendo doesn’t see that as possible due to cost and security issues. Game Over Thrity, a Twitter user with over 20 years of experience working on IT projects and infrastructure, shed some light on what might have influenced Nintendo’s decision-making in a thread.
“As these systems age, they require patches, security, special contracts, updates, and personnel that know how they were built (and maintained),” his Twitter thread explains. “As time goes on, there are security holes, servers, code, infrastructure, etc., that can’t be brought up to modern standards. It becomes a constant struggle between maintaining legacy systems, paying people to do so, and trying to keep up with global regulations. It’s not cheap by any means. They can’t just ‘leave the lights on’ and stop supporting them. What if someone hacked the payment processor?”
With every passing year, the Wii U and 3DS eShops likely became more expensive to maintain and an increased security risk for the video game publisher. Instead of investing the time and resources into pleasing a smaller amount of players, the easier option is to turn everything off entirely. While he isn’t affiliated with Nintendo, Game Over Thirty’s assessment aligns with what we’ve heard from Nintendo and Omdia.
"The Wii U’s global active installed base will drop under one million in 2022."

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Nintendo is ending Wii U and 3DS eShop service
nintendo shuts down wiiu 3ds eshop

Nintendo has announced the end of its eShop service for the Wii U console and 3DS handheld. The eShop will stay live on those devices until late March 2023, after which players will no longer be able to purchase games or download eShop apps and services for those devices.

After the closure, players will still be able to redownload games and DLC that they already own, use online play, and download software updates.

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